


Raven

by dhazellouise



Category: Naruto
Genre: Blood and Gore, F/M, Rape/Non-con Elements, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-15
Updated: 2015-12-15
Packaged: 2018-05-06 20:16:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5429384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dhazellouise/pseuds/dhazellouise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Working side by side with the most powerful Anbu was exhilarating. The danger that their profession provided had been Sakura's subsistence. However, the danger also brought forth more than a hair-shearing circumstances. AU/Non-mass Warning:Gore & Violence</p>
            </blockquote>





	Raven

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto but he lent me these outstanding characters to me, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Itachi, to make this fic. I do not gain profit from writing this story. This is solely for entertainment.
> 
> Warning: Medical terminologies which are hard to grasp if you're not listening to your anatomy or you haven't studied anatomy yet. Other information is mostly from my health care lecture and laboratory lessons.

**_Title:_ Raven**

**_Pairing:_** **Itasaku**

 ** _Genre:_** **Angst/ Romance  
**

**Non-Massacre and Alternate Universe**

**Chapter 1  
**

This is a treat before I could continue to write the rest of the stories. I already with the newest chapters and even the prologue of Dance of Seduction. I'll be posting it after I finish the chapters and the prologue one by one. I don't have classes this coming December 1, so I have plenty of time writing my stories. I'm also going to finish A kiss between friends this Saturday. So please be patient with me...I'm still busy with some of my school activities, but I do have some time to write my than you think. ** _  
_**

**_Summary_ **

_Working side by side with the most powerful Anbu was exhilarating. The danger that their profession provided had been Sakura's subsistence. However, the danger also brought forth more than hair-shearing circumstances._

**Warning: _Rape, Violence and Gore._**

"Stay here" the man behind the wolf mask ordered, strands of his raven black hair cascading in disarray over his wide shoulder, he then turn and disappeared from her sight.

As her Anbu captain, Haruno Sakura could only nod in response, her heart thudding fiercely against her chest when she felt Itachi's genjutsu ensconced the area.

An ominous silence descended inside the cave where they were hiding. The sound of the waterfall was far off the background as Sakura's head radiated with excruciating pain. The gash on her head that she had gain after the explosion was bleeding freely, staining her pink locks with streams of ruby blood. Her left eye was bruised and damage, red patches surrounding the right portion of her conjunctiva, indicating that she has a Subconjunctiva hemorrhage.

The corner of her left eye was becoming purplish which had resulted when she was thrown from the impact of the explosion and into a bark with the left side of her face hitting the rough skin of the tree. However, her other team mate had not fared well from the explosion and had suffered more damage than she or her Captain had.

The explosion had torn a chunk of flesh from his left lower arm while he had suffered a third degree burn from his left thigh to his upper torso, scorching his flesh with fiery heat and exposing burnt flesh in its wake.

The explosion had heralded their doomed as Sakura had found herself at her limits to heal her unconscious comrade while her Captain had kept the enemies at bay; providing Sakura enough time to heal her fallen comrade. But their time was limited, and Sakura was left with no choice but to defend herself.

Three dead rouge-nins later, Sakura had resumed her work and healed her team mate. She had been wrapping a sterile cloth over her patient's burnt lower and upper left limbs when she was interrupted again. Though this time, it wasn't an enemy, but her Anbu Captain. After assuring that neither was a Clone or a trap, her Captain immediately hustled her into the rock shelter hidden behind the plunge waterfall. The rock shelter was shape like a shallow cave, cramming three people inside when Sakura and her captain had carefully laid there unconscious comrade inside.

After that, her Anbu Captain had left her with a simple and quite command.

" ** _Stay here."_**

"Stay here." Sakura repeated under her breath as she tried to repress her growing apprehension.

"What is he going to do?" Sakura whispered, staring at her injured team mate, who merely lay there unconscious; free from the anxiety that Sakura was suffering at the moment.

Sakura heard an explosion from the distance, making her heart leap towards her throat when she heard the maniacal laughter that soon followed.

" _Deidara,"_ Sakura thought as she recalled the name of the man who had blown a chunk from her team mate. She glanced towards the silent man on the ground, who was covered with loose, snowy white sterile cloth from his leg up to the side of his face.

" _The artist bomber,"_ Sakura gathered after she had watched the blonde threw the clay bombs over them while perched in his huge clay bird.

Sakura heard another explosion, stirring her team mate awake as the cave shook by the force of the explosion. Uchiha Shisui groans, while Sakura's adventurine eyes had darkened when her mind went haywire with her overly creative imagination. The vision of torn limbs and flesh scattered on the ground with blood trickling from the torn appendages and organs made her stomach turn; more so when she imagines the corpse was no other than her Anbu Captain, Uchiha Itachi.

"Damn that man!" Sakura cursed as she knelt down beside her groaning team mate. Uchiha Shisui was finally fully awake after he had drifted in and out of consciousness for the past 10 hours.

Despite Sakura's exhausted state, she still got the time to vent her frustration over her unperturbed Anbu Captain. The Uchiha was, after all the major pain in the behind when she had joined their team. He had always ordered her to stay behind and not involve herself with the fight, and as his substitute-subordinate of the team, Sakura had conceded without uttering any opposition to the unfairness of the situation. It was unlike her to just submit to the Uchiha's order, yet she nevertheless did it with great reluctance.

" _I don't understand him at all!"_ Sakura thought grumpily, running her medic hands carefully over the bandages which were beginning to stain with blood from the open wounds. Her patient continues to groan, and Sakura could only wonder how her team mate could have survived the blast without blowing up his entire body.

She has to thank her Captain for that. The wolf mask Anbu had swooped towards her other team mate before Shisui was eradicated in to oblivion. With his blinding speed, Uchiha Itachi had survived the blast with just a singed in his hair.

Sakura would have chortled at the Uchih's simmering hair, but she did not have the time to do so as their enemies had engaged them into another full time battle. They had taken down three more enemies while Shisui was incapacitated. Protecting their fallen team mate while fighting had been a difficult task, yet they had gone through it with no fatal wounds.

However there were two rouge-nins who had proven to be a difficult opponent. One was the blonde artist bomber while the other one was a red head puppeteer, and Sakura had to admit that the red head was quite handsome. He had even successfully distracted her by just bestowing an angelic smile, which would have been fatal if she hadn't dodged the poisonous senbons on time.

Handling rouge-nins with an angelic smile was far more dangerous than she had imagined. But damn, she couldn't help it if he was one hell of a male specimen. She would rather much prefer fighting the cute blonde than the hot red head, though the thought of asking her Captain to change opponents had pried the idea from her mind. Sakura already knew that Sasuke's older brother was far more frightening than her shishou's fury and Ibiki's severe stare combine.

Sakura couldn't handle Itachi's oppressing silence. It was quite unnerving when she had encountered it first hand after violating his commands.

Sakura's head whipped to the side to stare at her team mate. The wounded Uchiha tried to sit up but Sakura prevented him, placing a gentle yet firm hand on his shoulder.

"Don't move Shisui-san." Sakura ordered softly, pushing the Uchiha back on the ground, her medic bag and kunai pouch elevating his left upper and lower limbs, allowing blood flow to his burnt limbs, while his head lay on the cold ground.

"You'll open your wounds." Sakura explained as his right eye focus on her, the left side of his face was heavily bandage. His nerve endings was completely burn, preventing him to use his left eye and from feeling any sensation or any pain in all other areas of his scorched skin. But despite that that knowledge, as a medic-nin, Sakura still have to rate her patient's pain threshold. It was an utmost priority to make her patient as comfortable and pain-free as possible.

"Shisui-san," Sakura said softly, trying to prevent him from moving too much and at the same time watching for any sign of shock. "How are you feeling?"

Shisui stopped squirming underneath her firm grip and stare at her with a hint of amusement.

"I'm fine Sakura." Shisui spoke hoarsely, his throat dry while his lips were parched. Being burn like a stake could do that to you, but drinking water was out of the question. It was medics-orders.

"But I'll be more than fine if you let me sit up, Sakura." Shisui added as he tried to move again, raising his right elbow up while his left side remain limp on his side. The nerve endings on his left lower and upper extremities were evidently damage. Sakura gathered placing a hand on his right shoulder, pushing him back down.

"I'm sorry Shisui-san but I can't allow you to do that," Sakura replied firmly, inserting more force in her hand to push him back on the ground. "You suffered a third degree burn, moving around would only worsen your current state—"

"I'll be fine Sakura." Shisui assured her, though Sakura was far from assured.

Sakura shook her head and sighed. She had healed Uchiha's before, and one thing that she had learned from the experience. They were a stubborn lot, but Sakura was unyielding.

"No, Shisui-san." The Uchiha scowled at her.

Sakura ignore it and resume checking the sterile cloth wrapped around the burnt areas. Blood was seeping through the cloth wrapped around his left arm. The white cloth wrapped in a recurrent bandage to support his missing left hand was absorbing the blood and doing its part to prevent any infection.

Shisui was fine as far as she was concern, his wounds would slowly heal in matter of months, if they survive that it. Sakura hadn't healed his burnt skin or even knit his wounds due to her chakra depletion. So she had resulted to treating him the normal way, while reserving the rest of her chakra for fighting.

The ground shook as they heard another explosion, dust and pebbles showered above their heads when the tumult reverberated through the rock shelter.

"He's out there, isn't he?" Shisui asked quietly as he craned his head to the side, watching the curtain of clear water slapped against the eroded rocks. Itachi's genjutsu was still a useful fortification, but it would be a matter of time before it would disintegrate when the genjutsu caster get critically injured. Itachi maybe a powerful shinobi, but the state he was in, lack of sleep and low in chakra would force him to his knees before he could defeat their formidable enemies.

"Hai," Sakura replied, following his gaze, her eyes darkening "He's out there."

The cave was silent as they listen to the explosions and the maniacal laughter drifting towards them.

Sakura's head jerked to the side when she felt Shisui move. Grasping his uninjured shoulder, she forced him back down, her eyes flashing in warning.

"You can't go out there Shisui-san," Sakura scolded him, glaring at the Uchiha. "You're still injured."

"That bastard is out there, Sakura," Shisui said through gritted teeth, his eyes squinting and glaring back at her. "He's going to kill himself if I don't help him."

"I know that Shisui-san." Sakura snapped at him, already knowing that their Anbu Captain was a piece of work when it comes to risking any possible situation just to reach his desired goal. Uchiha Itachi was reckless sometimes when he tried hard not to.

"Have faith in him," Sakura tried to soothe her irate team mate, who had activated his sharingan, trying to intimidate her by its deadly gaze.

"He's your Anbu Captain after all." She said staring at his sharingan dead on.

"He's your Captain too." Shisui pointed out to her while Sakura stared blankly at him.

"Yes, but only for this mission." Sakura said as she stood up suddenly, surprising Shisui who slumped on the ground after Sakura had pushed him hard.

"I'm only here to fill Inuzuka-san's post." She reminded him, her back to him as she listened outside. The explosions had stopped, the maniacal laughter had ceased, making Sakura tensed with dread.

The deafening silence could only mean two things.

Either Itachi had successfully taken out the artist bomber.

Or

Itachi had been obliterated by the explosion and their enemies are currently searching for them right now.

With a sense of foreboding, Sakura move, her Captain would need her medical skills if he was injured and he would need her if he loses all his chakra. Fighting against those two powerful rouge-nins would be fatal. Shisui was already out from harms way, and sakura was not going to let the Uchiha expend himself for their sake.

"Shisui-san," Sakura said as she took a couple of steps forward, the drops of waterfall splashing on the jagged rocks and soaking her ninja shoes when she paused near the rivulets of clear water.

"Don't move." Sakura whispered, sidling towards the entrance beside the corner edge of the rock shelter where it was dry, her eyes straining towards the hanging valley near the waterfall "I'll help Itachi out. You don't have to worry."

Sakura heard a distinct snort and slowly turn towards the man behind her with a frown on her face.

"What's funny?" She asked curiously, watching closely as Shisui shook his head in amusement which totally puzzled her.

"You," Shisui replied smiling almost bemusedly.

"Why?" Sakura's brows knitted, not really comprehending what the jest was all about.

"You're going against Itachi's orders again."

Sakura scowled at him.

"You would have gone after him if I hadn't stopped you." Sakura retorted.

"Yeah, but he was the one who told you to stay behind." Shisui replied shaking his head. "I heard him… though not clearly"

"He said that you should stay behind to baby sit me." He added massaging his throbbing head with his uninjured hand, his face looking sideways at the pink haired medic who was glaring fiercely at him.

"You already know that I can't allow you to move around!" Sakura snapped at him. "And if you are, can you possibly defeat an enemy in your current state?"

Sakura queried mockingly, arching her brow at his form.

Shisui did not reply, his eyes staring blankly at her, already knowing that the kunoichi would never back down from the argument.

"Just what I've thought," Sakura smiled sweetly at the dumbfounded man. "I'll protect your precious Itachi-kun for you then."

Sakura turn to leave, waving her hand behind her.

"Ja ne, Shisui-san!"

She did not wait for Shisui to reply and jumped out from the rock shelter towards the outcropping, running against gravity with only a modicum of chakra to support her weight. Her feet slipped from the wet surface of the rock but Sakura easily maneuvered herself before she could plummet down into the rocks at the base of the water fall, which were covered by splash back of the waterfall.

Grasping the bedrocks, she let her body swing to the side and landed above her with ease. Her knee bent on the ground, her heel touching her buttocks while her other right knee was drawn to her chest with her right feet firmly planted on the ground, gloved palms pressed on the ground.

The woman with the cat mask surveyed the area, her face becoming grim as her adventurine orbs met total distraction.

The area was clearly destroyed by the blonde's explosion. Trees were uprooted and there was a huge crater at the center. Smoke was rising from the charred debris, while fire continue to blaze over the surrounding trees, creating a brush fire. The Waterfall Village was windy, easily fanning the flames to spread around. The fire would not die down until someone extinguishes it. Red and orange fire consuming the whole forest.

Sakura could see smoke and rising from every direction as she stood to her full 5'6 height, still there was no sign of the blond bomber and her black haired Captain.

 _"Itachi,"_ Sakura thought worriedly, then started running towards the trees, her adrenaline pumping in her veins as she run slowly than what she was accustom to.

Someone had finally noticed her presence and was now making his way towards her. Sakura's chakra level was dangerously low, and defeating this enemy would be harder for her, though the thought of her Captain lying unconscious and near death, made her determine.

Sakura would defeat this enemy before she could help her stupid Captain.

She successfully hid herself through the thick foliage of trees without a skirmish. The smell of ashes and burnt wood surrounded her. Fire was blazing near her hiding place, her back pressed closely to the trunk as she craned her neck to the side, listening for her enemy's approach.

 _"Itachi you better be alive."_ Sakura thought grimly as she unsheathed her katana, the only weapon that she had with her. She had forgotten that she had used her kunai pouch and medic bag to elevate Shisui burnt limbs, but she did not dare go back to retrieved the items.

The blade smoothly sliding from its sheathe, a soft grating sound was the only thing she heard along with the thudding of her heart as she took the katana from her back.

She could feel the enemy was moving in on her.

Sakura would have to use her black katana, the two kunais and three shuriken attached to her arm guards as the means of survival.

If this was how faith had gotten her, then she would also have to hand her future to faith.

Dead or alive, she would still fight.

This was how Sakura lives her life.

Danger had become Sakura's subsistence. Surviving would come after she faces danger.

Death was never an option to Sakura.

Adrenaline was pumping in her veins as Sakura went out with her black katana raised before her. She leap on the air for a surprise attack, her black katana glinting as the sun hit the metal.

She could see bellowing black cloak as she came down on her enemy, her feet barely touching the ground when she swung her black katana into a deadly arched.

The silence was broken by the clung of metal against metal as their weapons meet, wind blowing against them.

Sakura's eyes widen at the person, her hands straining to keep the kunai in place.

"You!" Sakura growled her eyes flashing with deadly intent as she gazed at the bored looking man.

"Konichiwa… Onna"

* * *

A gloved hand reach out to pick out the thin deadly metal on his forehead, droplets of blood seeping from the wound, staining the pale face hidden behind the mask while ruby eyes remain blank.

The porcelain mask started to crack before it slowly fell out, the senbon that pierce the mask descended along with the broken mask to the ground soundlessly, the thin and small deadly weapon softly bouncing on the smooth grass before settling down.

Streaks of ruby blood stream down from the cut on the man's forehead, sweat glistening the man's face as he stared at the dead man at his feet. A kunai stuck out revoltingly from the dead man's skull, pools of red cradled the man's glorious blond hair, his face bathed with blood and smeared with dirt.

The man's azure eyes were open, staring unseeingly at the clear blue sky; lifeless.

Uchiha Itachi stared impassively at the dead body, a feeling of grudging respect welled up inside him after recalling the battle between them.

The blond rouge-nin had proven to be a difficult enemy after he had tried to dodge all the explosives thrown at him. He had used the power of his kekei genkei to evade all the explosives. However, engaging a battle with his enemy high on the air had complicated things. He nevertheless came out a plan despite the hard time the artist bomber had occupied him with his explosives.

Itachi had not wasted his time in bringing his enemy down. He had used himself as a diversion while his clone had thrown the explosives tags attached to the kunai towards the huge clay bird. His clone had bid his time to ensure that the enemy was within throwing range. The explosive tags were faked. Though his enemy had thought not.

The blonde bomber was proven to be even deadlier when he was on foot. The rouge-nin had concealed his presence to him while launching his fatal explosives towards his direction.

The battle had been against two coldly calculating shinobi's. Each has their own weaknesses and strengths. Itachi was a close range combatant while his enemy had been an expert in long range attacks. Though Itachi's god-like speed was nothing compared to his opponent, and had used it to his advantage.

Thus, he had successfully ended the life of his enemy with a thrust of a kunai, but the blonde had not die without leaving Itachi unscathed.

The artist bomber, as he had often called himself, had thrown a senbon into his direction before Itachi had landed the fatal blow into his skull. They were both exhausted and almost out of chakra, though Itachi had gain more of his energy when he had eaten the medi'c unpleasant soldier pills. The pill had been the last one in the medic's bag, boosting one third of his chakra levels and enabling him to use half of the capacity of his kekei genkei.

He had searched the blonde's location beforehand while dodging his attacks. Itachi had found him later, crouching in all fours in an bush. He had promptly attack him with a shower of shurikens followed by a fire jutsu. The rouge-nin had skittered away from his attack and had catapulted with one of his explosives. The spider explosives had instantly attached to his limbs while he had hastily substituted himself into a log. Itachi then went after the rouge-nin, who was just about to mount into his huge clay bird when Itachi had thrown a real explosive tag at him.

A huge explosion had destroyed 3/4 of the area while he had suffered a 3rd degree burn on his back leg and a part of his arm, his Anbu vest had been red hot and he had thrown it aside without a thought. He had been an ample distance away from the site before the explosive tag ignited.

Itachi had thought that it would have killed the rouge-nin, but it appeared to have haven't.

In fact the blonde had used a clone to deliberately lure him to that site while the real artist bomber had sent a small spider to attach in his hair. It was imperceptibly small, and what was more is that it had been specially molded to hide its chakra. It was an ingenious piece of art.

Yet it hadn't detonated. His enemy had chosen to delay Itachi's death with the thought of seeing him go up in flames. Itachi on the other hand had stopped the vision from happening. The blonde had appeared in front of him, grinning with triumph as he told him about the spider on his hair. Itachi had stood there, intently staring at his enemy, who had boasted the leash that he had in Itachi's life.

That was the blonde's mistake. Itachi had used his genjutsu on him while he had performed a swift hand seals for a clone jutsu, his spinning sharingan concealed beneath his mask. The genjutsu had encompassed the area, undetected by the blabbering blonde. The genjutsu had provided sufficient time for Itachi to perform the clone jutsu, his clone immediately taking action and had leap behind the oblivious blonde.

Itachi had let the genjutsu dissolve and watched as azure eyes widen in realization before his clone had forcefully twisted the man's arms on his back.

He had been a walking time bomb when he had swoop over his enemy, his intention clear. The kunai had gleamed threateningly on his hand when the blonde had spit out the senbon.

The senbon piercing through his Anbu mask and cutting shallowly into his skin, the senbon would have been deadly if he had been a meter away from the man. Swiftly and with deadly precision, he had raised his kunai and buried it into the man's skull, the sound of the metal sliding into hard bone softly rung, the thrust killing his enemy instantly.

Itachi's clone had disappeared after he had done his part, while he continues to stare at the man who had gain his respect as one of the powerful enemies that he had fought and killed.

 _"Deidara."_ Itachi recalled perceptibly, garnering the skills and the rouge-nins intellectual capacity into his mind.

This man would be remembered.

"Hn." Itachi murmured softly, wind whipping his unruly locks, a white lone spider still clinging to the strands of his raven hair, immobile and went unnoticed by the silent Anbu Captain.

* * *

" _What happen?"_ Sakura thought groaning, she roll to the side as she felt pain throbbing on her chest and head. She clutched the wound near her sternum, a kunai was lodged into her Anbu gear, piercing her skin while blood was seeping through her black Anbu shirt and staining her vest with its gruesome color.

She hissed as she slowly pulled out the kunai from her vest and threw it away from her. Gingerly, she sat up, her hand above the wound on her chest, just next to her heart. The wound was not deep, only piercing through her epidermis and into her subcutaneous tissue, but it was enough to cause pain. Her Anbu vest had kept the kunai from going deeply into her adipose tissues and towards her visceral organs. And judging by the depth of the kunai after it was thrust into her Anbu vest; her enemy had intended to just wound her, not kill her, but for what purpose? Only the most diabolical man would know.

But who had been her enemy?

Sakura's mind was foggy. She could not recall the details that lead her there.

Sakura swayed to side, suddenly feeling dizzy and weak. Something was definitely out of place as her head pounded. She fell to her side, her body landed with a loud flopped on the ground, while her face brushing against the blades of grass.

" _Where am I?"_ Sakura thought, gazing at the green grass near her eyes. _"What am I doing here?"_

Cold sweat broke over her body, her eyes dilated and her face flashed with color. Sakura suddenly felt unusually hot, and she knew that it was not the result of the sun, which was gently basking a warm glow all around her.

A shadow fell over her form, she could see flapping black cloak, nicely manicured feet encased in violet and gray ninja shoes close to her face.

Memories began flooding into her mind, her eyes darkening in comprehension.

This man was a member of the underground organization called 'Akatsuki', headed by the brother of their target. Their target had been successfully eliminated, culminating their Anbu mission. The mission was just a piece of cake for Sakura, having been shun to the side while her other team mates got to show their formidable moves. Not until they had crossed the border of the waterfall village that they realized that there was a malignant presence dispatching rouge-nins to have their heads in a silver platter, literally.

The death of their target had brought the wrath of an underground lord. As it is, enemies swarmed and descended after them when they had fled the crime. Entirely disarming them by their sheer numbers.

The information about the blood connection between their target and the underground lord hadn't been divulged into their bingo book, which hasn't been updated recently. It was only revealed to them after her Anbu Captain had captured and tortured one of the rouge-nins.

It had chilled her blood when she had watched her Anbu Captain torture the rouge-nin. Blood curdling cries rent the air when the Uchiha had enforced the genjutsu on the incapacitated man. The man had been impaled to a tree by two glinting katanas on each of the man's palm, courtesy of her other team mate, who had watched the torture with grim satisfaction.

Sakura had been compelled to watch, though she hadn't enjoyed the gruesome sight to say the least. She almost gagged when the man had been disemboweled after the Uchiha was done torturing him. This was Sakura's first Anbu mission and she had been assigned to Itachi's team when their other team mate had been ill disposed. But it was not the first time that she had seen vital organs protruding from torn flesh or blood pouring out from the fresh wound.

Itachi's unforgiving torture apparently wasn't fruitless; her captain had gained what he needed and cast a silent order towards Shisui before he left. Their enemy was indeed a vengeful Underground lord.

Sakura had been pale as she watched the entire proceedings, her Captain had not even acknowledged her presence as he disappeared to scout the area and hide their tracks.

She had been left with Shisui, who had finished what her Captain could not accomplish. He had swiped a long dagger across the man's torso, cutting off flesh and muscles with deadly precision; blood had spurted out from the wound and intestines had slide out from the man's open stomach to land on the ground, staining the ground with blood.

Sakura had turned blue; her hand had automatically gone to her mouth to stop herself from throwing up. She had encountered worst sight in her life as a medic-nin, though it was nothing like she had seen. The sight of the man screaming in excruciating pain could not be compared to the patients she healed. The rouge-nin was going to die, and the medic instinct in her had made her took a step forward to heal the man.

However, all of it diminished as she watched Shisui slit the man's throat to end his misery. The man had gurgled and choked in his own blood before his suffering was relieved, joining the rest of his fallen comrades who lay scattered on the ground, bathing in the puddles of their own blood.

It has been more than three days for them to lose their pursuers as they took the long route towards Konoha. They had successfully diverted their enemies by her Anbu Captain's ingenious stratagem, but accomplishing such difficult feat was evidently futile as their enemies continue attacking them relentlessly in all direction; easily gaining advantage when her team became imperceptibly tired and low in chakra.

The wrath of the Underground lord would never be put to rest until they were dead.

They had divided the task for patrolling and securing the perimeters when they set a camp. Two of them would keep watch while the other one would rest and refuel their chakra. It was mostly Sakura who was given time to rest since her medic skills would be of used later. There was never a time that both Uchiha had let their guard down. Not even when they were sleeping, which had been seldom for her other team mate and rare for her Anbu Captain. It must have been years of being an Anbu that made her Captain a little paranoid; suddenly becoming alert by a small sound that would disturb his semiconscious sleep.

But if it wasn't for her Captain's outstanding leadership and his trifle paranoia, she wouldn't have last long if she was alone in this mission. Sakura had been sleeping beside the hearth when an explosion had awoken her. The explosion had been a sing that their enemies had unscrupulously discovered the trap that they had set around their camp. Their new enemies was proven to be formidable opponents as a violent battle followed after the explosion, which had left Sakura completely depleted, only using a spare chakra for her to heal Shisui.

The burns and missing hand was the gift from the Artist bomber who had thrown a clay spider that had attached to Shisui's arm. Her other team mate had been unconscious after that, while her Captain and she had fought. Yet despite her Captain's ingenuity, superb fighting style and his perfect wield over his kekei genkei , adding to his sense of invincibility. Itachi was first and foremost a man who had been deprive of sleep and could not afford to lose his already fluctuating chakra nevertheless fought to protect them, enshrouding them with a genjutsu to hide them from their enemies.

Sakura however, choose to ignore her Captain's orders and thus resulting to her current predicament, with her lying on the ground and a small superficial wound that left her abnormally weak. Something must be in that kunai that triggered a negative effect on her body. Every muscle on her body contracted, releasing a huge quantity of lactic acid that resulted to her muscle exhaustion. She could no longer move, even if she wanted to.

Every cell in Sakura's body was tense as she waited for the man to make a move, which did not take long as she was suddenly lifted from the ground; a hand pulling the roots of her hair painfully as she stared at the man, her neck forcefully craned and her knees awkwardly bent underneath her.

Sakura's body was becoming numbed as the lactic acid did an about turn and attacked her muscles, disabling her to move.

Long fingers, reach out to touch her face, caressing her cheek and neck; her Anbu mask lay broken on the ground after the man had taken it from her earlier. Her heart shaped face upturned to the figure; an ominous silhouette that held her life in his hands.

"Onna." the man murmured, grasping her nape.

Sakura's eyes widen, her heart pounded against her chest. She watched as a sadistic smile appeared across the man's well sculpted lips.

"Sleep."

She heard him whisper before dark spots erupted before her eyes; her body went limp and fell to the ground with a loud thud.

* * *

Sakura saw blood. Her hands were stain with the ghastly color.

Blood was pouring out from the ends of her shortened hair, strands of pink hair floating on the sea of her own blood, her hair darkening into a shade of red as it bled from the cut while her blood eerily glowed through the darkness.

Sakura was in excruciating pain. A kunai gripped in her hand as she screamed in pure horror. The strands of hair in her hands bled, staining her hand. Her hair sticking into her neck and face as it drain the blood from her body.

Blood and tears pouring down her face, her knelt figure soaked with blood as her echoes continue to resound around the darkness.

The screams of pure agony went unheard.

Sakura jerked awake, her heart pounding into a fast contralto, adventurine eyes landed on the patch of grass in front of her, sweat beading her forehead and her skin unusually warm.

She stared at the grass for a moment, trying to calm her racing heart.

 _"It was just a dream"_ Sakura thought tiredly, gazing at the grass through heavy lidded eyes, unusually drain.

 _"But what a weird dream that was,"_ Sakura mused, rolling to stare at the clear blue sky above her _"Why would my hair bleed?...they're made of dead cells, so they aren't supposed to bleed."_

 _"But what does it mean?"_ Sakura thought in confusion, her thoughts faraway as she continues to contemplate about her dream.

 _"It doesn't mean anything stupid. It's because it was just dream. Dreams are supposed to be surreal,"_ She scolded herself as she continues to dwell on the weird dream. _"Everything can happen in a dream, however much it goes against the natural."_ Sakura left it at that, not going back to think about the dream.

Sakura move her weak limbs, wincing as she felt pain from the wound on her chest. She gingerly sat up, her arms straining underneath her as she levered herself to stand up, her arms and feet pushing hard.

She landed on her behind ungracefully as her leaded knees scream in pain.

Sakura looked around her, seeking for the man who had done that to her.

The man was gone and Sakura frowned at the realization.

 _"Why did he leave?"_ She thought with bewilderment.

"I thought he was going to kill me for good," Sakura continued to ponder as she tried to raise herself from the ground, sweat trickling down from her forehead. "Yet he hadn't..."

Sakura stood up shakily on her knees, her hand above the wound on her chest. The wound was still dully throbbing, the rhythm of her heart abnormal.

Sakura's heart made a unnatural thud, her hand clenching on her Anbu vest, her emerald eyes narrowed in pain.

 ** _"Poison"_** Sakura thought with distressing realization as she peeled off her Anbu vest gently, flinching when the gray metal brushed against her wound.

The body shield landed in the grass with a soft clung, followed by a flop as she settled back on the grass. Sakura raised her Anbu shirt up, baring her creamy white skin and her brassier which was stained with dried blood.

Haruno Sakura, Konoha's top medic-nin, set to work. Though, it was already too late now that the poison had entered her system, slowly destroying her cells and disabling her immune system.

She would become vulnerable to any diseases, but it would be a matter of time when her heart gives up on her before she could.

* * *

The raven haired man paused on the branch, his progress having been stopped by the sight of his medic, who had once again ignored his order. Itachi coldly watched her, his eyes glittering with a hint of annoyance.

The girl staggered, her hand seeking for support. She lean on the branch as he watched her took a couple of breaths before trudging heavily towards who-knows-where.

Itachi softly jumped on the ground, careful not to surprise his stubborn medic. He strode towards her, his sharingan flashing.

"Medic." He clearly stated, jerking the woman towards his direction.

 _"Much for not surprising her"_ Itachi thought, observing how her hand automatically went to the black katana on her back, her eyes gleaming fiercely. But when she realized who he was, she relaxed her hold on her katana and let her hand fall to the side.

Itachi's eyes narrowed at the open show of relief and security. The medic had apparently lost her sensibilities to let her guard down on him so easily. He might be an enemy in disguise, which was why he had told her the code before they had went on this mission. It would be to assure them that there will no be enemy masquerading as one of their team mates. The medic's simple action had triggered his paranoia. He was sure that this woman was an enemy in disguise.

"What is the code?" Itachi asked directly, his hand reaching for his kunai, his black katana on his back was absent, destroyed by the blast when he had fought the artist bomber.

The woman in front of him glared, her moments of relief after seeing him alive disappeared.

"You're a bastard." Itachi froze at the name, his hand half way towards the kunai and his eyes narrowing.

The woman in front of him glared at his form, unwavering.

"That's not the code." Itachi stated grimly, his face an impenetrable mask as he attack, hand gripping the kunai.

"I'll take that back." He heard her say before he slammed her into a tree, his kunai place right above her carotid vein. He pressed hard; blood began to drip from the cut, sliding into her black Anbu shirt.

"You're not a bastard..." The woman gasped as his hand tightened around the kunai; his sharingan glittering dangerously close to hers while their breaths mingled as he pressed the kunai to her throat.

"You're paranoid!" The woman shouted in his face while he stared blankly at her, his stare penetrating.

He could detect fear and anger in her turbid eyes, and he caught a glimpse of an emotion that he had never seen in her eyes before. Then it disappeared instantly before any normal shinobi could ponder over it, but Itachi already know what it was. His sharingan had seen it clearly.

This was not his medic. Itachi was sure of it. His medic had never shown any hopelessness, even though they had fought there way to arrive here. She had never showed any defeat when she could not heal his cousin while at the same time protect him.

This woman was not his medic. This woman was not Haruno Sakura.

Itachi made a move for a clean swipe, ready to cut her throat when a hand gripped his wrist.

* * *

Sakura glared at him furiously, her gloved hand tightening around his wrist. God, this man was insufferable and paranoid, not a good combination. Yet that was why the Uchiha were called the Masters of Assassinations. They could kill an innocent squirrel when the poor things disturbed their slumber, mistaking it for an enemy.

And Sakura felt like she was one of those squirrels, stirring the Uchiha's paranoia. She just came to help him and now he was going to kill her? How she hated to have been a Good Samaritan, ending up being poisoned and then being at nick point with her Anbu Captain, who she was supposed to extend her medical aid to or help him defeat the enemy; but she couldn't do neither of it. She was now weak because of the poison.

"The code is 3#3434#45$5432423$3432$34#$54543%$#." Sakura grind out the expletives and curses which Itachi had introduced to her as their code. Some of it had made Sakura flushed with color, and had gaped at Itachi when she had heard it first hand, who in turn surprisingly looked like he had been reciting the Shinobi rules from her Ninja Academy textbooks. She had wondered why Itachi had chosen that for their code, but she never did ask him.

The surrounding became hush as they both stared at each other, her eyes were furious while Itachi's eyes were calculating.

The kunai on her neck resume pressing into the skin of her throat, blood streaming down from the wound as she glared.

"Uchiha." Sakura hissed as she felt the pain coming from her new wound, adding to her weakened state. She could not keep up with this charade any longer. Acting like she was strong and not dying took its toll on her body.

The poison was slowly spreading, and she would have reversed the process if she had enough chakra to spare. The poison would kill her within three days, which was how her enemy had plan all along, making her suffer a slow painful death.

She was now losing hope, now that the poison was targeting her chakra points, blocking the areas and preventing her from refueling her chakra. She could not heal herself, the only thing she could do was to go back to Konoha and asked her shishou to heal her, which would take more than 3 days for them to arrive there. Unless of course, if their enemies will delay them again.

However, she would have to pretend that nothing was amiss. She didn't want her Anbu Captain to think of her as a nuisance for getting poison or pretty much stupid for ignoring his order. He had already made it clear that she was only a medic in his team and not an Anbu assassin. But now, her medic skills and her puissant strength would be useless. She could not heal or defend herself.

She was not going to look inept to her Anbu Captain.

"I just said the code!" Sakura bit out angrily, glaring at him through her hazy eyes, her heart thudding abnormally against her chest, weak like her. "Why aren't you releasing me?"

The Uchiha impassively stared at her, the kunai still in place.

Sakura pressed her body back into the tree, stopping herself from collapsing over her paranoid Anbu Captain, who she was sure would instantly kill her if she make a move forward.

"Did you hear me? I said the code is-" The kunai disappear from her throat and she almost fell to the ground when Itachi moved his oppressive presence away from her, his kunai back to his arm guard. Sakura righted herself up and glared, her head whirling from the sudden movement. Her Captain merely giving her a blank stare at her glare. Sakura simmered but before she could open her mouth, the Uchiha beat her to it.

"You shouldn't have let your guard down that easily, Medic," Her Anbu Captain reprimanded her in a low voice, his tone unchanging. "I could have been the enemy disguise as your Anbu Captain."

Silence reign as a nerve began to throb in Sakura's head, a dangerous sign if she could use her chakra laden fist to hit the arrogant man.

"I hope that there won't be second time to this." The Uchiha stated, his eyes staring directly at her.

Sakura clenched her fist, gritting her teeth. The turtleneck of her Anbu shirt was wet as the cut continue to bleed.

"Yes, Captain." Sakura gritted out, her eyes blazing with ire, but she did not dare do anything to elicit her Captain's disapproval. She had already gone against his order, and answering back towards her senior again would surely leave an angry mark on her file for insubordination. She didn't want that to happen.

She had just been indicted to the Anbu Ops last month, and this was her first mission to prove herself that her new status was rightly made for her. Her shishou had been proud of her when she had passed the Anbu Exams, and had been ecstatic for having caught the enigmatic eye of the Uchiha.

Itachi had been the one who requested her medic aid and kunoihi skills, but she never thought that she was supposed to act as a flower pot for her first mission.

"Has Shisui woken?" Itachi asked, eyes remaining blank.

Sakura bristled.

 _"How can he call Shisui-san by his first name while he calls me 'Medic'?"_ Sakura thought scowling, her head throbbing, though it wasn't from the anger. The poison was slowly lowering what was left of her body defenses. She could not fight back the infections. Her skin was now clammy, the black Anbu shirt clinging to her body.

"Yes, he's awake," Sakura spoke venomously, concealing her weakness. "He's still talking the last time I saw him."

The Uchiha did not flinch at her sarcasm.

There was an awkward silence that followed. Well for Sakura it looks awkward to her, though she could not tell for her Captain, who looked like he was just observing a rare butterfly collection, bland as always.

"Let's go." Her Captain commanded out of the blue, whirling around and intending to leave immediately and her to follow him.

Fire was still roaring from their surrounding areas, a clear sign of Itachi's intense battle. The sky above them had darkened into an ominous gray, created by the smoke rising from the destroyed forestry.

Sakura however had stayed rooted to her spot; her gaze had frozen towards the object clinging on her Captain's retreating form.

Sakura reacted without thinking.

* * *

Itachi tensed when he heard the sound of grating metal as it was unsheathed from its scabbard. Itachi reacted instinctively, his hand went towards his kunai as he felt her move.

He couldn't believe that he been deceived. The Medic had said the exact code, every order and the specific intonation when he pronounced the code to her.

Had the enemy forcefully access it from the medic?

Itachi twirled his kunai in his hand as the woman came close to him, his hand a blur as he aimed the kunai behind him. There was a tag on his head as she pulled his hair none to gently, jerking his head back.

He heard his weapon sinking into flesh and bones, blood splattering the ground as he hit his mark. He turned around to look, his hair swinging around him as his ruby orbs met wide adventurine.

Then he saw it.

Strands of Raven locks hanging in suspended animation in the air, watching slowly as it descended on the ground.

His eyes straying back towards the girl, whose face was splattered with blood; and he stared, suddenly feeling cold.

The sky above them flashed, and then followed by a rumble as they continue to stare at each other.

A drop of rain fell on the girl's nose before trailing on her chin, only to fall on the ground.

"I was only trying to save you." Itachi heard her whisper softly, her face pale and her eyes dimming.

"I was only trying to save you." The girl repeated dazedly, swaying on her feet, her black katana loosened in her grasp and fell to the ground with a soft thump.

The sky opened up above them, instantly soaking their forms.

The girl fell to her knees while Itachi stood there frozen, staring at the girl.

The rain washed away the blood on her face, water streaking down her cheeks looking more like tears than rain.

"Captain," The girl murmured, looking blankly at his feet.

Itachi watched as she weakly raised her hand and open her palm. He stared at the object in her hand, and looked back at girl, his face unusually pale.

"You can't report me for insubordination..." The girl whispered, her mouth barely moving as the hand fell to her side before she swayed and slumped to her side.

Itachi swoop towards her, his arms wrapping around her petite form, rain soaking their clothes and hair as he knelt beside her. He cradled her head in his hand and her shoulder with his arm.

"...I just save your life...so you can't report me... for insubordination..." She said her soft barely a whisper while Itachi leaned over to listen. He gazed into her adventurine orbs, drops of rain clinging to her pink lashes, which fluttered weakly when she blink the raindrops or... is it tears? from her eyes.

"Captain..." Itachi listen intently, watching her dilated irises. The girl was apparently in pain, and she hid it well with stubborn glint in her eyes.

"Please…. don't report me…" Her soft voice trailed as her eyes fluttered closed, looking fragile as a butterfly while her pale face upturn towards the sky, blood pooling from her wound.

Itachi studied the girl's face, rain pounding over them.

Itachi had no heart to tell her that his life doesn't need to be saved, since there was no life to save in the first place.

His eyes landed on the girl's open palm, the clay spider motionless; the owner of the bomb, now lying dead in the rivers of his own blood.

The wind picked up around them, whipping against his wet bangs that clung to his face, the blood from his wound gone; washed away from the rain.

Itachi run his hand through his hair, his hand encountering his shortened locks. He slowly let his hand fall to the side and stared at the woman lying immobile in his arms, pale and still as death.

With strands of raven hair on her open palm.

**_"Because"_ **

_I have occasionally_

_Been persuaded_

_To leave my own path_

_To go the way of another_

_Even when all my instincts_

_Tell me to trust my self._

_Sometimes it works_

_But often it doesn't_

_And worst of all….._

_Sometimes it's hard_

_To find my own way again._

**-by Leonard Nimoy**

**Author's Note:**

> (AN: All the medical stuff are true, I did some researching on how to treat 3rd degree burn while the rest of the stuff came from my Anatomy Classes and my health care lecture and laboratory. I also research about the Waterfalls. The small cave like thingy inside the waterfall is called a rock shelter. The plunge pool is actually created by the pressure of water as it 's like a deep swimming pool. If you still can't picture out the setting, then just use your imagination and picture out the setting as you see fit.
> 
> Micro Japanese Terminologies:
> 
> Onna-woman
> 
> Konichiwa-good afternoon
> 
> Have you guessed why I titled this story as Raven?
> 
> Well, it is actually about Sakura's dream also has a significant meaning if you are in my country.
> 
> Philippines Superstition:
> 
> In my country, if you dream about your hair getting cut. It is a foreboding sign. It means that you are going to die or someone close to you is going to die. Well, I really don't know where my ancestors got that idea. Maybe, because they just had a bad hair day? I really don't know. Here in the Philippines, you will hear many superstitious beliefs. Like if you dream about a snake, it means that someone's going to betray you or if you clipped your nails during the night, your parents will die.
> 
> Yeah, I know. We Filipinos are superstitious folks, but that's our culture.
> 
> Small Anatomy lessons:
> 
> The hair is made of dead cells and is rich with keratin. And yes, our hairs don't bleed. We have to thank God for that. I got this idea when my classmates where talking about keratin after we were dismissed from our Anatomy class. We got into this topic about how God is pretty much omnipotent and omniscience for creating our the world and us humans. We also got this point that we shouted to the skies and thank the lord for his ingeniousness. If it wasn't for God, what would have happen if our hair contains red blood cells and has a nerve endings. What would happen if we cut our hair? Just imagine what Sakura had dream about cutting her hair while it was alive like it was some vital organ. We would surely feel explicit pain and our hair would bleed freely, and thus resulting to blood loss. Imagine if God hadn't created our hair without cells, we wouldn't be going to the hair salon, wouldn't we? We would obviously look like apes.
> 
> So enough with all the weirdness. The story was already weird so giving you this weird ideas would surely make you weird.
> 
> I would like to thank for Yami Uchiha for betaing this story. Yami, I hope that you haven't pulled the roots of your hair for beta reading my stories. I know I'm a very frustrating person all the time, though you still put up with me and hadn't made a move to get me out from you hair.
> 
> Yeah,ladies and some gents. This story is all about the hair. So if I were you, you should take care what God has given to you and not abused it with hair products and the daily trip to the hair salon. Trimming your hair occasionally would make your hair grow in a faster rate, and prevent split ends. Well, that's what my teacher had said to me during our Anatomy classes.
> 
> I would also like to thank my friends, Aki, Wolf, Lee and Eco for inculcating all this profound and somewhat weird ideas to me. We're geeks for discussing our Anatomy lessons during that time. We'll thinking and discussing our lessons wouldn't hurt our fragile mind wouldn't it? So what is it to waste of not thinking?
> 
> So there you go. The story Raven


End file.
